Water Colouring with Stamp Pads

Just some quick cards I whipped up on the weekend. I love water colouring………it is soooooo relaxing.
Now, I am by no means what you would consider an artist, but, I believe, with the right tools, anyone can create something stunning with a little bit of that “wow” factor. The essential tools for easily creating that authentic water-coloured look are: Stazon, water colour paper, an Aqua Painter, and a selection of Classic Ink pads, a line art stamp set. I have used the stamp set that we received compliments of Stampin’ Up! at Convention, “Fun and Fast Notes”, which is a really cute set and just perfect for this technique. Stazon is a must because it won’t run when the water is applied to the image to blend the colours. Stampin’ Up!’s water colour paper is just sensational and very forgiving as you can blend and re-blend colours on your image without making the paper go “furry” . It is also lovely and thick and gives a nice professional finish to your project.
To begin, just stamp your outline image in Stazon on the water colour paper. Then take your selected Classic ink pads and squeeze the flexible lids so that a little pool of colour sits in the lid. Simply pick up the pigment with your Aqua Painter and fill in the outline with your selected colours. It is better to add a little at first then go back over your image to add more later if needed. Water colouring has a lot of serendipity to it and it will never turn out exactly the same each time so your work of art will always be an original!
Below is a close-up of the card I made for some friends who have just had twin boys………..


To create this card inked up the picture separately, stamped, cleaned off the ink and then inked the greeting. I “borrowed ” an “s” from another greeting in the same set so that the fonts would match, inked it up with my black Stampin’ Write Marker before stamping it at the end of the greeting and hand-writing the exclamation mark to turn it into a card for twins! Edited to add: just realised after making the card and posting it that it should be spelled “ies”, but, hey, it’s the thought that counts lol.
Monthly Stamp Club and Free Class
I am offering two new stamp clubs starting next month and running from June – November 2008.
The clubs will have 6 members and over the next 6 months I will be running free classes, just for club members, held every month at my home in Farmborough Heights. The class will be a cool project that I wouldn’t normally run as part of a workshop. There is no cost to attend the class and all materials will be provided, but each member of the club will commit to buying a minimum of $50 worth of Stampin’ Up! product each month, not including postage. I will also offer “club only” specials from time to time.
But here’s the best bit. Each club member will get their turn at being the “hostess”. This means that even though the classes are at my house, once during the 6 months you will get to be the hostess and receive the hostess benefits yourself. So you will have your choice of at least one of the Level 1 hostess sets in the new catalogue, plus additional cash to spend, depending on the total for the night.
Club 1: Monday evenings 7.30 pm : FULL
Club 2: Thursday evenings 7.30pm (edited 30th May) FULL
Like to be part of the club? Just email me at sandvwebb@bigpond.com with your address details and I’ll send you an application form. The first person to sign up for the second group will be the first hostess for that club and will also choose the night we will be meeting. Be quick, space is limited. First club special: Taffeta Ribbon selection, $12.95.